Karen Sypher arrives at the federal courthouse in Louisville on the day she was convicted of extorting Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino.

By Jason Riley, The (Louisville) Courier-Journal

Convicted this week of extortion, Karen Sypher said in an interview Friday that she believes "100%" that she didn't receive a fair trial and that prosecution witnesses lied in their testimony to protect University of Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino.

Likening herself to African-American civil-rights hero Rosa Parks, Sypher said she will continue fighting in hopes that "power and money don't prevail, that the truth prevails eventually."

A day after a U.S District Court jury in Louisville found her guilty of extorting money from Pitino, lying to the FBI and retaliating against Pitino for going to authorities, Sypher said she never had a chance for an acquittal as long as the trial was held in Louisville, given Pitino's power and influence in "this small city."

"There is no justice," Sypher said in a 40-minute phone interview. "… This was a 1700s witch trial from the very moment I was raped."

First Assistant U.S. Attorney John Kuhn Jr. said Friday: "We will not respond to these types of remarks."

In a closing argument Thursday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Marisa Ford said prosecutors had presented overwhelming evidence of Sypher's guilt. She was convicted on all six counts against her by a jury that deliberated for 5½ hours over two days.

The jury foreman, Glen Elder, said in an interview that jurors didn't come close to acquitting her on any of the charges.

Sypher, who is free pending her Oct. 27 sentencing by U.S. District Judge Charles Simpson III, said she "absolutely" had wanted to testify during the eight-day trial and "couldn't wait to get up there" but ultimately chose not to at the urging of her attorney, Jim Earhart, who she feels did an "excellent" job.

"I can't go backwards again and play shoulda, coulda, woulda," Sypher said. She also said she was offered several plea agreements before the trial that would have allowed her to avoid a prison sentence if she admitted her guilt. But she said she doesn't regret turning them down.

"That would mean I was guilty," she said.

Sypher described herself as "numb" and said she wasn't thinking yet about a possible lengthy prison sentence. Her convictions carry a maximum sentence of 26 years, though Earhart has said she more likely faces seven to eight years under federal sentencing guidelines.

Sypher said she wasn't scared of being cross-examined.

In a separate interview, Earhart said that while he had subpoenaed six witnesses and was prepared to put Sypher on the stand, he ultimately decided that the defense was able to get in most of the evidence it wanted through the cross-examination of government witnesses.

"I made a decision it was in our best interest to proceed the way we did," he said. "It was my call. … We did the best we could."

Earhart said Sypher will file an appeal centered on Simpson's decision to allow the prosecution to admit evidence about Sypher's sexual relationships with several witnesses.

"I've never been in a trial yet were I've been able to ask witnesses who they were sleeping with," Earhart said.

Earhart said that testimony was unfair and shifted focus to Sypher's morality, rather than the facts.

Earhart acknowledged that that Pitino was well-prepared, and as a professional motivational speaker he was able to put his own "spin" on the case through his testimony.

Testifying over two days during the trial's first week, Rick Pitino said he was embarrassed and humiliated as a married man for the "unfortunate incident" at Porcini but that the sex was consensual. He said he never had sex with Sypher again and doubted her claims that he fathered the child that she later aborted.

Asked about Rick Pitino's testimony, Sypher initially said she would have no comment, but then lambasted the coach and criticized U of L for not firing him.

"If he can lay his head down at night and sleep well, then all I can say to him is that he only has one person to answer to and he knows who that is — that's the good Lord above," Sypher said.

Sypher said that the testimony of many of the government's 20 witnesses seemed to be "rehearsed."

"I know every witness on that stand was programmed," she said. "They had two years to go over what they needed to say.

At different times, Sypher compared her ordeal over the last seven years to that of a prisoner of war — saying she was "brainwashed" by her ex-husband Tim Sypher, the one time Louisville equipment manger whom she married. She said she identified with Rosa Parks "for standing up for her rights. I relate to that so much."

Sypher said she felt some relief from having her story told at trial.

"I can honestly say I've never felt so calm in my life, because I finally was allowed to speak after being duct-taped over my mouth for so many years," she said.

The government charged that Sypher, 50, fabricated rape charges against Pitino, then tried to force him to give her a house, cars and $10 million to keep quiet.

The jury found Sypher guilty on all three counts of making threatening communications to Rick Pitino with the intent of extorting cash and gifts from him.

The defense countered that Pitino tried to bribe Sypher to keep her quiet.

Sypher also was convicted of lying to the FBI when she said she didn't know who left the threatening messages and when she said her relationship with lawyer Dana Kolter, who sent a threatening letter for her to Pitino, was "strictly business."

She also was found guilty of a sixth count for retaliating against Pitino for reporting her extortion attempts.

Sypher claims that she had additional evidence that wasn't presented at trial.

"The story has not come out yet," she said. "The truth will still be known. Whether I'm six feet under or, the truth will totally be known."

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